For What Purpose Did Jesus Build His Church?
For What Purpose Did Jesus Build His Church?
When Jesus said, "I will build My church ..." (Matthew 16:18) He
obviously had some purpose in mind. In this continuation of a study of
His church, we will now study what the Bible teaches about why His
church came into existence, what function and place it is to serve in
this world. So, please stay tuned.
But first, the West End Church of Christ presents these fifteen
minute sermons each Sunday. We have only one reason for doing it -- we
want to preach the truth of God's word without being restricted by human
doctrines, creeds, and wisdom. That is why we repeatedly ask anyone who
listens to communicate with us if you do not agree with what we teach on
this program. This is not done out of a spirit of dare, or challenge,
but in sincerity and in the interest of being absolutely right about the
most important issue of this life and of eternity.
We also want to invite you to attend our services. Bible study
begins at 9 a.m. followed at 10 a.m. for worship -- we honor God in the
reading and teaching of His word, several prayers, gospel songs, giving
of our means, and partaking of the sacred memorial feast of the Lord's
Supper. Sunday evening we assemble for worship at 6 p.m. and mid-week
Bible study is each Wednesday night at 7 p.m. Our meeting house is
located at the corner of Parkside Drive and Old Morgantown Road, just
across from Lampkin Park and Tapp’s Drive-in. Be our guest today.
Solomon's well known statement, "To everything there is a season,
a time for every purpose under heaven" (Ecclesiastes 3:1) surely applies
to Christ and His church. In the same chapter, the wise man said, "I
know that whatever God does, it shall be forever, nothing can be added
to it and nothing taken from it. God does it, that men should fear
before Him" (verse 14). When Jesus made the grand announcement that His
church would be built upon His own deity, it was that which was in
complete harmony with the great divine purpose of the Almighty.
Paul's statement in Ephesians 3, verses 9-11 manifest this very
well. He described the great mission He had been given as "to make all
people see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the
beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things
through Jesus Christ; to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God
might be known by the church to the principalities and powers in the
heavenly places, according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished
in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Brother Guy N. Woods wrote, "This statement is a clear exposition
of the mind of God touching His purpose and plan in bringing salvation
of man through the church. It is through the church that the manifold
wisdom of God is to be made known. This is a statement of far-reaching
proportions. As we have already pointed out, it is a clear refutation
of the premillennial view that the church was not originally in the
purpose of God. We are here informed that not only did God ordain that
through the church His wisdom is to be made known to the world, but that
this was in harmony with the 'eternal purpose' which He purposed in
Christ Jesus our Lord. It follows therefore that there never was a time
when the Lord did not intend to bring to man the knowledge of salvation
through the church." (Gospel Advocate Annual Lesson Commentary, 1946,
page 21).
This is, indeed, one of the most impressive statements about God's
wisdom is revealed in the passage before us. The eternal purpose of God
Almighty is involved, a purpose which found completion in Christ Jesus,
the Lord. The church of Christ is involved, being that which makes
known the wisdom of God in all its various facets. The wisdom of God is
made known by the church of Christ to the "principalities and powers"
in "the heavenlies." It is unlikely that any paragraph in the sacred
writings is filled with more pertinent information about God's wisdom
than this.
At first glance, the passage appears to be saying that the church
is the subject which is active in making known God's wisdom. Sermons
and articles have, for years, affirmed the duty of the church of Christ
to preach the word everywhere, based on this statement. The verb "might
be known" is passive and the church is passive in making known God's
wisdom. The church makes the wisdom of God known, but in a different
manner that involves more than evangelism.
The context shows the unfolding purpose of God in bringing Jews
and Gentiles together in one body, by the death and vicarious suffering
of Christ. The result of this unfolding is the church. This makes
known the wisdom of God in several ways. The many cults and religions
of the Gentiles could not offer common ground to Jews and Gentiles;
neither could the nation of Israel. Something new was created to
accommodate all men of all ages, the church of Christ. But, this is
only one of the ways the church makes known the wisdom of God.
The plans God revealed for His church show that, in His infinite
wisdom, He selected just the right time in history to bring it into
existence. Paul wrote, "But when the fulness of time was come, God sent
forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that
were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons"
(Galatians 4:4-5). It is quite well known that until the first century,
there was very little that could have expedited the rapid spread of the
gospel of Christ and the establishment of the universal church. At the
time Christ came, the nations were beginning to emerge from centuries of
isolation from each other. As the power of Roman culture spread, their
technology produced an excellent network of roads. Shipping lanes were
more definite and probably the most important fact is that a single
language began to be nearly universally used, the Greek Koine (common)
speech.
The Old Testament had been translated into Greek by 70 some Jewish
scholars (tradition is the only source for the actual number of scholars
and it is unreliable. The number is insignificant.) Alexandria, in
Egypt, boasted the most elaborate and complete library in the world.
The Greek Old Testament scriptures spread through the various lands
where Jews had been scattered and was probably one of the most important
factors in the development of Greek as the common language of the day.
Greek then became what English now has become. Had the mystery been
revealed later, the leavening influence for good would not have checked
the decadence of the Roman controlled world. Earlier revelation of the
mystery would not have lent to the rapid spread that a later time would
and did. By the time Paul wrote the epistle the church at Colosee, "the
gospel...was preached to every creature which is under heaven"
(Colossian 1:23).
The church stands eternally as a monument to the manifold wisdom
of God. As an expertly cut diamond makes known the artistry and skill
of the cutter, so the church makes known the wisdom of God. Those who
marvel at the skill, knowledge, and expertise of those who can create
devices that will transmit visual and oral images through space, should
marvel at the many sided wisdom of God as they consider the church He
planned and perfected through His Son. However, this wisdom appeals not
to us but to the "principalities and powers" who are "in the
heavenlies." Principalities and powers can easily apply to super human
beings, such as angelic beings, who have demonstrated an intense
interest in the planning, development, and execution of the mystery of
God. Peter wrote of the "grace and glory" of God. The ancient prophets
foretold of His grace and glory. Even as they prophesied they could not
fully fathom the depths of their own words. He adds, "searching what or
in what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did
signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the
glory that should follow." He adds that even though they never
comprehended the complete message of the Messiah, they ministered to
those who did receive it and adds significantly, "which things the
angels desire to look into" (II Peter 1:10-13). Principalities and
powers may very well be the very same angelic beings.
Principalities and powers are "in the heavenlies." This
expression is found six times in the book of Ephesians and means
variously, "the church" (1:3; 2:6), the abode of Christ, at God's right
hand (1:20), the abode of the "principalities and powers" and the realm
where good and evil are locked in combat (6:12). The Greek expression
is the same in all these instances and the English translation varies
only in Ephesians 6:12, rendering it there as "high places." The
spiritual realm is obviously meant. Certainly if the very existence of
the church makes known or displays the unfathomable wisdom of the
Almighty in "heavenly places" it ought to do the same in the "earthly
places." However, only those who are truly "spiritual" can "see the
kingdom of God" (see John 3:3,5. To "see" often means "to comprehend").
A good summation of the position taken in this article is
expressed by the late J.O.F. Murray in the Cambridge Greek New
Testament. He wrote, "Its (the church of Christ, DRS) very existence
was a memorial of Divinely appointed barriers Divinely broken down, and
a living sign of a Will and a Power which would work on till the victory
of love was universal and complete. Neither to angels nor to men were
the last resources of the manifold Wisdom as yet disclosed: but a
sufficient pledge of the 'unsearchable riches' contained in it was
already given in the Gospel, and in the living community created by the
Gospel'." To which we say simply, "Amen."
Dear Friend, if you are a member of some church other than the one
Jesus built, please consider the truth from this lesson. His church is
your one means today of being a part of Christ, of being part of that
which is eternally planned, divinely built, and providentially preserved
throughout all generations, to the glory of God in Christ. To be a
member of it, as a penitent believer right now, determine to be baptized
for the remission of your sins that you may be added to that church by
the Lord.
If you have any question at all about this topic, or if you would
like extra study materials on it, contact us. You can write us at West
End Church of Christ, 1609 Parkside Dr., Bowling Green, KY. 42101.
Until the next time we have this opportunity to be with you by radio,
may God richly bless you and yours. Good bye.
Radio Sermon No. 60
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